


True Feelings

by huuuuuuuuulia



Category: BanG Dream! (Anime), BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Fluff, Pre-Relationship, chisato b like, fellas is it gay to let your childhood friend sleep on your lap, valentines fic, very very late valentines fic oopsies, yeah im gawking over how hot my friend is but im TOTALLY STRAIGHT!!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-17
Updated: 2020-02-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:27:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,094
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22778689
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/huuuuuuuuulia/pseuds/huuuuuuuuulia
Summary: Kaoru and Chisato bake chocolates together. But it leads to a lot more than just that.Like letting your childhood friend sleep on your lap, or trying to write her a Valentines letter with your true feelings...
Relationships: Seta Kaoru/Shirasagi Chisato
Comments: 4
Kudos: 109





	True Feelings

**Author's Note:**

> hi this was supposed to be posted on valentines but fuck deadlines amirite.
> 
> i hope this is cute enough for yall ahahaha. as usual this fic is just as stupid and cheesy as everything else i write but i hope you guys like it nonetheless.

“Ah, what a lovely surprise seeing a kitten such as yourself out here!”

Chisato looks up from the shelf she was crouched down at to see none other than Hanoeka’s very own Prince, Kaoru Seta. She was smiling down at Chisato charmingly, though the blonde was unfazed.

“Good evening, Kaoru,” Chisato replied casually as she turns her gaze back to the display of various spices and extracts, “I wasn’t expecting to see you here. Is there a reason you had for approaching me?”

“Just wanted to say hello is all.” Chisato sensed the taller girl’s gaze on her as she says, “Are you struggling to find something? You look quite troubled.”

Chisato sighs. She just wanted to do her grocery shopping in peace. The last thing she wanted was to have Kaoru tag along with her as she always does whenever they were within ten feet of each other. Chisato wanted to get her shopping done, go home, and get everything she needed to do over with. But Kaoru was probably just trying to help out, so…

“Yes. I’m looking for orange extract. I can’t seem to find it.” 

Kaoru let out a small hum. Chisato looked up to watch her red eyes scan the higher shelves. After a moment her eyebrows raise a little as she spots what Chisato had been looking for and grabs it. She held it down to Chisato and gave her typical dashing smile, “You’re requested extract, madam.”

Chisato couldn’t help but snort, “Thanks,” She said as she stood up and took the extract from Kaoru’s hand, “But you really don’t need to get all extravagant like that, you know?”

“What’s so wrong about being chivalrous to my dear Juliet?” Kaoru asks, still grinning as if this was amusing for her.

“You sound like an idiot.” 

“Ah, but if it makes you laugh then perhaps looking like a fool isn’t so bad.”

“Dork.” Chisato rolls her eyes giggles, “Now, thank you for helping me find what I needed. I’ll be on my way.” The blonde smiles at Kaoru and turns to make her leave, but the taller girl cuts her off.

“Before you go, may I ask you what you are shopping for?”

Chisato furrows a brow and looks back at Kaoru. The question was a bit out of nowhere.

“I’m making chocolates for Valentines. Usually I just buy some since I never have the time, but this time I wanted to try baking them”

Kaoru’s eyes light up and she beams, “What a coincidence! I could infer by what you had in your shopping basket, but I’m glad I was right!” She quickly walked over and clasps Chisato’s hands with hers, “Chisato, please allow me to assist you in making chocolate!”

“Wh-?” Chisato stammers at the sudden request, “Okay hold on, that was completely out of nowhere— and why are you holding my hand?” Heat rushed to Chisato’s cheeks when she noticed how close Kaoru was and how eagerly she was holding her hand. Gosh, it was something so simple that they always did when they were kids, why was it suddenly causing Chisato to get shy now? Could it be the princely charm finally getting her? No, god forbid. Maybe it was just because she was taken off guard…or the fact that Kaoru’s sparkling red eyes and stupidly excited grin was kind of cute.

“Sorry,” Kaoru’s hands let go and she steps back a bit, “You see, I decided that I also wanted to make some sweets for my friends this year. In fact, that’s what I’m here for right now,” Kaoru lifts up the shopping basket that hangs from her arm, “I have a lot of ideas of what I want to do, but…” She trails off.

“You can’t cook for shit.” Chisato finishes.

“Yeah, I can’t cook for shit.”

The blonde laughs a bit again, thankful that at least Kaoru isn’t afraid to admit it, “And you wanted to cook with me so you can have somebody to help?” She asks and Kaoru nods.

“Yes, I am sure you have far more cooking experience than I, and I just happened to see you here with that stuff for making chocolate, so…”

“Ah, I see,” Chisato smiles apologetically, “But you know I’m no good at cooking either, right?”

Kaoru blinks.

Chisato couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed by it. With all the things she was good at, she could never figure out how to properly use a rice cooker.

“Yeah…so I’m kind of in a rut too.” She shrugs, “But I’m sure I’ll be okay. Us cooking together would be an absolute disaster though, so I think you’ll have to find somebody else to cook with you, Kaoru.”

“It won’t be a disaster if we try really hard.” Kaoru gives a dashing smile again. Chisato sighed. 

“Kanon and I tried really hard when we went to that tea shop, and look at what happened. I’m telling you it will be a bad idea,” She suddenly cocks an eyebrow, “Wait, aren’t you good friends with Lisa? Why don’t you just ask her to help?”

Kaoru glances at her feet and presses her lips into a straight line.

“What’s so wrong with that idea?” Chisato asks, confused at Kaoru’s reaction.

“Well…” The taller girl's eyes continue to glance around awkwardly. 

“Wait— Are you that embarrassed to have other people know you can’t cook? Of all things?” Chisato makes the realization and looks at Kaoru with surprise, though in all honestly Chisato should have seen it coming.

A light shade of pink tinted Kaoru’s cheeks as she smiled nervously, “W-well, that and I’m sure she’s already as busy with other things…”

“If anything, Kaoru, I’m busier than she is. And at least Lisa knows how to cook.”

The awkward expression Kaoru wore shifted to a pleading one as she whispered, “Chisato, please? I can’t even put a Pop-Tart in the toaster without burning it! It would be too embarrassing if it was around Lisa or anybody else, but I’m used to being embarrassed around you, so it’s fine!”

“Used to being embarrassed—?” Chisato begins, but decides to drop it, “Kaoru, I don’t know why you do this to yourself. I can assure you that Lisa’s image of you as a prince charming or whatever won’t shatter just because you can’t cook.”

Kaoru didn’t look like she was buying it.

With an eye roll Chisato huffed, “Okay, fine. I’ll let you cook with me.”

Kaoru’s expression instantly flipped to a wide grin, “Thank you, my Juliet! Your kindness never fails to warm my heart.”

“Whatever.” Chisato deadpans, “It’s not like you were begging for me to cook with you or anything.”

“Don’t act so down!” It seems like Kaoru’s demeanor a has fully switched back to its usual nonsense, “This serves as a lovely opportunity for the two of us to bond as childhood friends, no?” The taller girl lessens the distance between them both and wraps her arm around Chisato’s shoulder. Earlier on, Chisato may have despised it, but something about the innocent excitement Kaoru showed towards them working together made it hard for Chisato to not smile, “Now, my fair cooking partner, what other ingredients must we scout for?”

“I already got them all.”

“I see!” Kaoru removes her arm from Chisato and steps back, “Then I guess we shall head to check out then?”

“What about your shopping?” Chisato points at Kaoru’s shopping basket, which had nothing in it.

“Well, if we are cooking together then do we not already have what we need?”

“I guess you’re right…” And with that the blonde turns to head towards the cash registers, Kaoru following behind.

* * *

The two decided to meet at Kaoru’s house the next day. Chisato would bring the ingredients and Kaoru would provide the rest of the cooking tools. Her parents decided to spend the day out so that the childhood friends could have the whole kitchen to themselves. By noon that Saturday, Chisato had arrived at Kaoru’s doorstep.

“Good afternoon! Thank you again for agreeing to this.” Kaoru greeted Chisato as she opened the front door, “Come on in, make yourself at home as usual.”

“The formalities aren’t necessary, Kaoru, I’ve been here god knows how many times.” Chisato smiles and then walks straight to the kitchen. She sets down the bags full of chocolate ingredients that she was carrying onto the dining table, “Right, so this should be everything. Let’s go ahead and pull up the directions.” Chisato takes out her phone to do so, and as she does Kaoru excuses herself upstairs for a moment. Chisato scrolls through her phone for the chocolate recipe as Kaoru comes back down and shuffles around in the kitchen for a bit. 

Suddenly she hears the beginning to Pastel*Palettes’ Yura-Yura Ring-Dong Dance playing on a speaker.

“Kaoru, what the _hell_ are you doing?” She looks up from her phone and scowls.

The taller girl blinks innocently, “I always play music when I work. I thought we could listen to some of your music— It’s very nice. I really love your singing voice, Chisato.”

_ Damn you. _ Chisato swears internally as she feels herself get shy again. She was used to compliments from her friends, but something about how Kaoru just casually makes the effort to listen to Pastel*Palettes’ music because Chisato was there was...sweet.

“I’m glad you think so, Kaoru.” Chisato looks back down at her phone, hoping that Kaoru wouldn’t notice the heat rising to her face, “But we don’t have to listen to just my songs. Play whatever you like.”

Kaoru chuckles, “Nonsense, this is what I like. And I have more songs than just yours on this playlist too, don’t worry.”

Chisato smiles, then finally pulls up the chocolate recipe she had been looking for. She was planning on doing three types of chocolate: normal milk chocolate, orange, and almond. She also bought materials so that she could wrap them into cute bags; Some had little heart patterns on them while others had polka-dots or stripes. Chisato planned to write little notes on some pink slips and put them in the bags as well.

“Alright, here we go.” Chisato sets her phone down on the kitchen’s island and Kaoru walks over to peek at the directions.

“Melt the butter...” Kaoru mumbles, “Okay...this looks kind of complicated.” 

Chisato agrees and suddenly questions as to whether the two will really be alright baking like this. But they were already committed, there wasn’t any going back.

“Instead of melting it on the stove we can...put it in the microwave?” Chisato suggests. Kaoru’s brows furrow as she thinks.

“Maybe the way we melt it has an effect on the taste. Perhaps we should just follow the directions.”

“True point...Go ahead and grab a saucepan then.”

Kaoru does as told and hums along to the song playing on the speaker as she does so. Once she pulls out the saucepan and sets them on the stove, she falls quiet. Chisato was grabbing the butter from her cooler bag as Kaoru suddenly went:

“Hey, um...Chisato?”

“Hmm?” Chisato walks over to the stove where Kaoru is standing, “What is it?”

Kaoru’s eyes are glued to the stove and refuse to look at the shorter girl. Her hands bunch up at her sides and Chisato notices red forming on the tip of her ears.

“We’re...alone...”

“Yes..?”

“Um...” the taller girl shuffles around and finally glances up at Chisato, who was gazing at Kaoru curiously, “So since we’re alone...if you want...” Kaoru’s arm reaches up and hugs her side as her voice reduces to a shy whisper, “You can call me...that.”

At first Chisato was at a loss for what Kaoru meant, then a huge smile crept onto the blonde’s face and she began to giggle, “By ‘that’ You mean Kao-chan?” 

The name makes Kaoru’s face erupt red and she nods. There it was. That adorable expression that sent Chisato into a fit of laughter every single time.

“Awww, Kao-chan! I wasn’t expecting you to be so eager for me to use that name!” Chisato coos playfully as she walks closer to Kaoru, who was flustered to silence, “I thought it was too embarrassing?”

“I...” Kaoru turns and looks up at Chisato again, “It’s embarrassing but...”

“But?”

Kaoru’s feet shuffle and she starts to play with her fingers. Her eyes are averted down again as she says in a soft voice, “It’s embarrassing but...when it’s just you and me I like it.”

Chisato’s entire body felt like it was wrapped up in a blanket of warmth as she started laughing again. Despite how funny she found the situation, her childhood friend bashfully saying that she likes being called a special nickname for the two made Chisato very happy. Not just because Kaoru’s reaction was adorably hilarious, but because she saw the silly nickname as something special and valued it so much that she just wanted it to be between her and Chisato. 

Only Kaoru could make her feel this kind of way, though Chisato would never admit it.

“Well,” Chisato finally says as her laughter dies down, “If I can call you ‘Kao-chan’, then you can call me ‘Chii-chan’ if you want!” 

Kaoru looks up at Chisato in slight surprise, “Oh, is that so...”

Chisato nods and Kaoru gives a shy little smile before turning on the stove, “Alright then, Chii-chan, could you hand me the butter? How much do I need to melt?” 

  
  
  


When cooking with Kaoru, Chisato noticed a few things. One was that Kaoru has never grown out of being a worry wart and always fussed over the smallest of details. Every cup, drop, and tablespoon had to be one hundred percent exact or else Kaoru would dump it out and try again. The behavior was in a way admirable, but at the same time quite frustrating. Chisato was a terrible cook and wanted to be careful but Kaoru was taking this to a whole new level. 

Though the blonde couldn’t stay mad forever. She knew Kaoru meant well and was only trying so hard because she really did just want to make something nice for her friends. Once again Kaoru was showing the sweetness that Chisato adored so much. No matter how much flair and flamboyance Kaoru would add to her words, the actions displayed always showed what made Kaoru really shine: her genuine kindness and love for other people. 

Other things Chisato liked about Kaoru began popping up while they cooked together as well. Chisato always knew Kaoru was a dork, and no matter how hard Kaoru tried to come off as Mister Cool that dorkiness always came through. Chisato would watch in amusement as Kaoru would get really into a song that was playing and bob her head to the beat, sometimes humming along as well. Chisato found it very cute and wanted to comment on it...but she knew it would only fluster Kaoru and she would never do it again. Chisato decided she would rather watch Kaoru blithely dance around in silence than ruin the moment.

The two would also chat, often times about random, silly things. Chisato may say a few things about people she’s dealt with and Kaoru would listen, letting in a few comments and laughing at Chisato’s snarky remarks. Kaoru chatted a bit as well; she loved talking about her band and their encounters. She also talked a lot about her drama club and Chisato could tell how much Kaoru adored her bandmates, club members, acting, and performing music. 

Chisato has seen plenty of people getting passionate about what they loved, but when it was Kaoru something just hit a bit different.

Perhaps it was because Chisato had seen what Kaoru was beforehand. She saw how detached her childhood friend was from her classmates, what little confidence she had, and how hard it was for the child to be happy with herself. Kaoru would be the happiest in the world when playing alongside Chisato, but once they graduated Chisato worried what may become of Kaoru now that she wasn’t by her side.

Now here she was, confident and happy, though still a bit of a fool. But Kaoru was a lovable fool, who really wasn’t as much of an idiot as she let on. Through talking with Kaoru about her bandmates and friends, Chisato could tell that Kaoru was a person that understood people well and was very considerate of other people’s feelings. She was also very good at handling situations that Chisato herself didn’t think she could deal with that well, even with her experiences in the acting industry. Kaoru carried herself like a dork, though Chisato knew that there was much more than that. 

As cheesy as it was, seeing her childhood friend so confident and happy after so long made Chisato feel incredibly proud, and very, very happy. Hence why she had a stupidly large grin on her face when listening to her childhood friend chat away while making chocolate.

The pair worked for about an hour, comfortably enjoying each other’s company as they had for so many years. Whenever they said each other’s nicknames the one being called to would smile a little and maybe blush (most likely the one blushing was Kaoru) or perhaps giggle (Chisato was prone to this) while glancing at each other affectionately. 

Kaoru and Chisato did run into a few roadblocks when attempting to cook. Chisato accidentally got a finger too close to the stove when melting butter, and Kaoru immediately freaked out. She went on her own over-dramatic soliloquy when placing Chisato’s hand under cold water and wrapping the burnt finger up in a bandage.

Chisato also sucked at mixing. Her arm always got tired and she just got sick of it halfway through. The chocolate seemed a bit on the lumpier side, but when she dipped a finger in to taste it, the chocolate seemed to taste just fine, so hopefully the sweets would still turn out good.

Soon the chocolate was finished, and the two put the tray in the freezer so the chocolate could harden. It took about three hours for the chocolate to freeze, so Kaoru and Chisato decided to simply relax in Kaoru’s room until the treats were ready.

“You know, I wasn’t expecting you to give out candy on Valentines day,” Chisato remarked as she took a seat beside Kaoru on her bed, “I thought White Day was more your thing.”

The taller girl shrugged, “It is true that usually I receive gifts from my kittens and friends on Valentines, then return them on White Day. However, I simply felt like doing a little something for my close friends this year,” Kaoru looks at Chisato and a playful little smile curls up her lips, “A call from fate, perhaps?”

Chisato smiles fondly and allows herself to chuckle a bit before responding, “That certainly makes sense. Hopefully these chocolates turn out alright. We didn’t seem to have too much trouble...”

“I might have put in a bit too much vanilla...”

“With how tedious you were being with the measuring, I’m sure you’re just fine,” Chisato replied, ”And besides, a little extra flavor won’t hurt.”

“Yeah...though we didn’t really mix everything together well either. It was still kind of lumpy when we put the chocolate into the molds.” Kaoru frowned and Chisato rolled her eyes.

“Kao-chan, it’s okay. We tried really hard, didn’t we? What’s done is done.”

Kaoru nodded, “Yes, you’re right...” her voice trailed off as her mouth widened into a deep yawn.

“Tired?” Chisato asks.

“Mhm. It seems like our hard work with baking has worn me out.” The taller girl smiles, “But it’s alright. The sleepiness will wear off.”

Chisato frowned, “You sure? You know I don’t mind if you rest until the chocolate is done. I can always just hang out in here,” the blonde smiles and then looks at Kaoru teasingly, “I can even let you sleep on my lap. You know, like how you used to.”

Kaoru laughs sheepishly and light pink tints her cheeks, “Now, now, that was so long ago, though they are fond memories...” 

When the girls were younger and spent days playing outside in the sun, they always returned home exhausted. When relaxing on the sofa and probably eating some snacks, Kaoru had a habit of falling asleep leaning against Chisato. Chisato would eventually move Kaoru’s head to rest on her lap and fall asleep herself. It was a routine: play, eat snacks, then fall asleep on each other until one of their parents came and woke them up to go home.

Kaoru’s finger begins to play with a stray strand of hair, “Really though, you don’t have to trouble yourself. I should be fine...” Another yawn.

“See, you are tired! And now I feel bad.” Chisato huffs, “Come on, I’ll hop off and you can lay down.”

“Chii-chan, you don’t have too...”

“Lay down.” The blonde curtly stands up and gives Kaoru a look that made her stop protesting. The taller girl shifts in her spot a bit, glances at Chisato, then glances away.

“What is it?”

“I...I thought you were going to let me...” The pink color returns to Kaoru’s cheeks and Chisato connects the dots.

“I was only joking—!” She exclaims, quite surprised that Kaoru actually thought Chisato was going to let Kaoru sleep on her lap. It was obviously just a little jab. Did Kaoru actually want to rest on Chisato? To bring back such a childish habit at this age?

Was Chisato really against the idea?

Kaoru looked very embarrassed at Chisato’s reaction and frantically backtracked, “S-sorry! That was silly of me, I should have known you we’re only kidding.” She laughs awkwardly.

A small smile creeps onto Chisato’s face and she sits back down next to Kaoru, who's looking at Chisato confusedly.

“I may have been joking, but I honestly wouldn’t mind if you wanted to rest on my lap.”

Kaoru’s eyes widen and she blinks, “You’re serious?”

“Of course! It’s a little silly but...for old time’s sake I’m willing to do it.”  Chisato is giggling, but something about Kaoru’s demeanor seemed less light-hearted. She seemed a bit nervous and it was showing in the color that slowly rose to her face.

Now Chisato felt a bit odd as well. This was just something silly yet kind that Chisato was doing for her childhood friend. It really should be no big deal, and yet to Kaoru it seemed to be one.

_ Why? _

“Well, if you’re really okay with it, then...” Kaoru murmurs and then slowly lays down, her head resting on Chisato’s thighs.

“Aww, look at you!” Chisato coos jokingly, “Just a big baby huh, Kao-chan?”

“Quiet, you.” Kaoru chuckles and nuzzles up against Chisato more. When Kaoru did so the blonde felt a little bit of heat rise to her face. Kaoru pressed against her with a gentle smile on her face felt kind of nice. 

The taller girl yawned again and fell quiet. Chisato guessed that Kaoru was now trying to sleep so she decided to just hop on her phone. About half an hour passed until Chisato’s attention began to focus more and more on the girl sleeping on her lap. Kaoru’s breathing was steady now, and she was still as a rock. 

“You really were tired, huh...” Chisato whispers as she sets her phone down and looks at Kaoru. She was on her side, so Chisato only saw half of Kaoru’s face. Despite this, Chisato had to admit that Kaoru looked very pretty.

Kaoru was always pretty; Chisato had thought that way about Kaoru since forever. But when she was silent and peacefully sleeping, Kaoru looked  _ very _ pretty. And cute too.  Chisato stared at Kaoru’s sleeping face. Her eyelashes were really long...also her hair was silky and gorgeous. Chisato wondered if Kaoru would wake up if she touched it. The idea was tempting; Chisato very much wanted to stroke Kaoru’s hair as she slept, like a mother would with her child, though that was kind of weird.

Kaoru also had nice lips. They were naturally red and plump looking. With them slightly parted as Kaoru gently breathed in and out, they looked especially lovely.

_ Why are you paying so much attention to Kaoru’s face? Why are you paying so much attention to Kaoru’s lips? _

That familiar heat rose up Chisato’s chest and scorched her entire face. Kaoru really was beautiful...and she was contently sleeping on Chisato’s lap, curled up against her, with a really cute looking face and very nice looking lips—

Suddenly, Kaoru stirred and Chisato’s heart did a cartwheel. 

The taller girl shifted and turned to her other side. Kaoru let out a drowsy murmur before nuzzling into Chisato’s lap again. Chisato almost passed out. For some reason, Kaoru now felt ten times closer than she did beforehand, and Chisato felt one hundred times more weird and bashful.

But another few minutes passed, and Chisato’s nerves calmed down as she got used to Kaoru sleeping on her. That awkward heat turned into the tender warmth that Chisato felt when Kaoru said she liked being called ‘Kao-chan”. It began to feel just like the old times when Kaoru would sleep on Chisato’s lap as a child. Chisato felt tempted to follow the routine and fall asleep herself, but she had to keep an eye on the time. 

She also wanted to look at Kaoru’s sleeping face a little longer.

Chisato did so, watching Kaoru’s sides calmly rise and fall and her pretty face lie still as she slept. If anybody walked in on the two, Chisato would have looked weird for smiling affectionately at the sleeping girl on her lap. But it was highly unlikely that anybody would walk into Kaoru’s room, so Chisato didn’t care.  That is until Kaoru’s eyes slowly opened and immediately made eye contact with the girl smiling down at her. 

She blinked and murmured drowsily, “Mhmn…Chii-chan…?” 

Burning heat instantly ran through all of Chisato’s body as she stared back down at Kaoru. Suddenly she understood how her little kittens felt.

_ Oh my god she’s adorable. Her half-asleep face is so fucking adorable. This is not fair. What the fuck. Fuck you.  _

Chisato had to look away, she didn’t want Kaoru to notice how she was literally just gawking over her childhood friend’s face. If Kaoru found out, she most certainly would never hear the end of it.

Kaoru blinked a few times and slowly sat up, stretching and yawning a bit here and there until she seemed to be fully refreshed and awake, “Ah, that nap was pleasant. You serve as a lovely guardian of my sleep, quite similar to the watchful Sandman. How fleeting…”

Chisato sighed and sat up, trying to gain composure from her mild freakout, “Do you think we should check on the chocolates now? It’s been three hours.”

“How long was I asleep?” Kaoru asked, slightly surprised. 

“I guess two hours...It certainly didn’t feel like it though.” Chisato remarked. Kaoru smiled apologetically. 

“Sorry, Chii-chan. You must have gotten a little bored just sitting while I slept.”

Chisato shrugged, “It really wasn’t that bad. I just sat on my phone.”  _ And spent the other hour and a half watching you sleep and gawking over how attractive you are, but you don’t need to know that. _

“I see. Well, as long as I wasn’t troublesome for you then it’s fine.” Kaoru stood up from her bed and walked towards the bedroom door, “Shall we head downstairs now?”

The shorter girl nods and makes her way to the door, but not before Kaoru slowly opens it and steps aside, guestering Chisato to walk through.

“Ladies first.” She bows in a way that was far more formal than necessary, similar to a butler escorting his mistress.

“Kaoru, we’re both girls.” Chisato deadpans.

“Shorter ladies first.” 

“Shut up.”

The pair headed downstairs and pulled out the chocolates. Much to Kaoru and Chisato’s relief, they ended up tasting just fine. The lumpiness wasn’t that noticeable and while the orange chocolate tasted a bit on the stronger side, it was still overall a good treat. Kaoru seemed to be incredibly proud of herself, going on another dramatic rant about how the bond of childhood friends can go against all odds when united against a common struggle. Chisato thought the speech was really stupid, but she smiled anyways as she carefully took the chocolates out of their molds and took some out so she could take them home. 

“...And so I thank you kindly, my dearest Chisato, for working alongside yours truly in making these delectable sweets. I cannot appreciate you enough.”

“You’re welcome.” Chisato replied casually, in stark contrast to Kaoru’s dramatic ending of her unnecessarily long soliloquy, “It was very fun and I enjoyed your company. However I should be leaving now.”

Kaoru looked genuinely disappointed, “Already? Mother would love to have you over for dinner.”

Chisato felt a little bit touched at how much Kaoru wanted her to stay and honestly fancied the idea, however she wanted to get her chocolates wrapped up and had a script to read over.

“I would love to but I really am quite busy, so I should be going.” Chisato smiled apologetically and Kaoru smiled back. 

“Oh well, next time then. Let me escort you out.” She says and then walks over to grab Chisato’s coat that was slung over one of the kitchen chairs. Chisato takes the coat from Kaoru and puts it on along with her shoes, then walks with her chocolates to the front door, Kaoru following behind.

“Goodbye, Chii-chan.” Kaoru says quietly as she opens the door for Chisato to leave. She smiles at her friend fondly, “Once again, thanks for everything. It ended too soon. You could even say it was fleeting…”

The shorter girl sighed, though it was in a more affectionate way than annoyed, “I’ll see you around, Kao-chan. Take care.”

* * *

As expected, Chisato received loads of kind messages on social media from her fans. Letters were to be expected too, but Chisato would not be able to see them until she went to the talent agency after school. 

Chisato got chocolates from her bandmates as expected. Kanon and Tae also gave Chisato cute little boxes of sweets. Kanon even wrote a lovely heartfelt letter.

Everybody was a little surprised to receive homemade chocolates from Chisato, mainly because they didn’t know that Chisato could cook, which wasn’t exactly wrong. Chisato would explain how she couldn’t really cook but wanted to try making chocolates for her friends this Valentines, and her friends would accept her chocolates with touched smiles. Thankfully, everybody liked the chocolates and found them quite tasty. It seems that Chisato’s mission was accomplished.

Once school had let out, Chisato made her way to Haneoka Girls’ Academy. She still had to give her chocolates to the rest of her bandmates and Kaoru.  On the pink slip that Chisato put in Kaoru’s baggie she decided to write something short and sweet. Chisato was very bad with words so she couldn’t really write anything that heartfelt, which in all honesty made her feel guilty. She loved her friends to death and had all the things in the world to tell them about how much they meant to her, but for some reason she could never put together the right words and just chickened out on the idea all together. So in the end, Chisato’s letters attached to her friends’ chocolates all ended up sounding the same.

With Kaoru’s letter though, she really tried. Mainly because Kaoru was the one who helped Chisato make chocolates. Despite it being Kaoru’s idea, Chisato really did appreciate the assistance she had in baking the sweets. She was quite convinced that the chocolates would have turned out a mess if Kaoru wasn’t there to help. Chisato also just enjoyed Kaoru’s company. She liked watching Kaoru hum carefreely to her music, talking to her about random things, watching Kaoru blush when called ‘Kao-chan’, or Kaoru gently sleep on her lap while looking super cute…

Valentines day was also the day one would confess their love to another person.

Chisato wasn’t stupid. She knew that these feelings she’s been feeling towards Kaoru were a bit more than just platonic. But she didn’t want to call them romantic either. It just felt too odd...and too fast. They were still there however, and a part of Chisato wanted to tell Kaoru about these feelings.

How proud Chisato was of Kaoru, how much fun Chisato had talking with Kaoru again...not playing their roles but instead being their own authentic selves. How pretty Chisato thought Kaoru was, how nice it was feeling Kaoru resting against her, how much she loved Kaoru’s genuine gentleness and kindness…

There was so much to say, but Chisato could never come up with the ideas or courage to write them down. So instead she wrote:

_ Kao-chan, _

_ I hope that me writing your nickname isn’t as embarrassing for you!  _

_ Thank you very much for making these chocolates with me, it was very fun. _

_ I know you’ve already had some of these since we made them together, but I hope you enjoy these sweets regardless! _

_ Thanks for sticking with me for so long. Happy Valentines! _

_ Your BFF, _

_ Chii-chan <3 _

Hopefully the nicknames and Chisato throwing in “BFF” would show some kind of sentiment. Chisato really did want to write something heartfelt and honestly tried...but in the end the letter just came out as typical as all the others. 

Maybe it didn’t matter. Kaoru got piles of letters and chocolates from tons of other girls. Chisato’s letter would just be one more on the pile. Even if Chisato put all of her feelings into a letter, would Kaoru take it seriously or just brush it off as one of her fans’?

The idea made Chisato feel very angry, so she decided to stop thinking about it.

Chisato arrived at Haneoka and made her way to the drama club room. Usually Maya, Hina, and Kaoru were all in there after school for practice or just to hang out a bit. On days where the bands had practice, they’d wait there for the rest of Hello Happy World and Pastel*Palettes. 

“Oh, Chisato!” Maya remarked as the blonde entered the club room. As expected, Kaoru was sitting on a stool reading over a script with Hina peering curiously over her shoulder. 

“Damn! This character is kind of a bitch, huh?” Hina said a bit too loudly, “That’s totally different from how you are, Kaoru. It’ll be pretty interesting seeing you play somebody like that!” Green eyes sparkled as the student council member giggled. Kaoru smiled affectionately at her friend then turned her gaze to the shorter girl standing near them.

“Why if it isn’t Chisato?” The actress beams and hops off her stool. Hina waves at Chisato energetically.

“Heya Chisato! Kaoru got looooaaads of chocolates today! She has a whole separate bag for them! Isn’t that crazy?”

“Yes, very crazy.” Chisato says plainly, praying that Hina will just leave it at that. She didn’t want to be reminded of how her letter won’t mean as much to Kaoru as she wants it to, “Speaking of chocolates, I have something for you three…” The blonde digs through her bag and pulls out three small baggies. Hina’s eyes light up and Maya beams.

“Oh right! Kaoru told me that you two made chocolates together!” Maya exclaims as she accepts Chisato’s chocolate, “Kaoru’s were super good, so I’m looking forward to eating yours as well, Chisato. Thanks!”

“Yeah, thanks a bunch!” Hina immediately pulls out a chocolate from the bag Chisato handed her and plops it in her mouth, “Mmmm! This is super good!”

Chisato smiles at her bandmates’ positive reaction, “I’m glad you like them. Kaoru, I made a bag for you as well.” The blonde hands Kaoru her own baggie and the taller girl smiles.

“Thank you, Chisato.”

Suddenly, there’s a little gasp from Maya, “Aww! Chisato, you even wrote little letters…”

At that the shorter girl felt a little bashful and looked away from the touched gaze Maya was giving her, “Well, of course I did. Just to appreciate you guys as my friends.” 

“Aahah! Chisato you write like you’re writing to your fans!” Hina giggled and that smile immediately fell off of Chisato’s face. Maya seemed to notice.

“Hina!”

“Whaaat? It’s not like that’s a bad thing! The letter is still very sweet. Thanks, Chisato.” Hina gives Chisato a genuine smile and the blonde feels better again. She looks over to see if Kaoru had opened her bag of chocolates, but to Chisato’s surprise she hadn’t.

Should Chisato really be surprised though? It was probably just another bag of chocolates to Kaoru. 

“Chisato,” Kaoru’s voice snapped Chisato out of her negative thoughts.

“Yes?” the blonde looked at the taller girl, who was holding two school bags. One was for holding school books, while the other was definitely filled with chocolates and letters from Kaoru’s little kittens.

“...Come with me.” Kaoru said, quietly so that only the two could hear it. Chisato glanced to the side and saw Maya and Hina walking out the drama club room door and chatting away casually. 

“Um...what about Maya and Hina--” Chisato glanced from the walking pair to Kaoru, who looked a little nervous? 

“We’ll be fine!” Hina says from across the room, apparently hearing what Chisato had said, “You two just do your thing. We’ll be waiting!” Hina waved and then made her way out while Maya seemed to be giving a thumbs up. Why was she giving a thumbs up?

Chisato wanted to ask why the two were leaving so suddenly, but they were out the door before she could say so. Chisato instead turned to Kaoru and looked at her confused.

“They left in quite the hurry, huh…” 

Kaoru shrugged a bit awkwardly, “Who knows? But until then, would you allow me to take you somewhere? I have something important I wish to give to you.”

“Kaoru, I can’t go anywhere far. I was planning on going home after this…” Chisato hoped Kaoru wasn’t planning something extravagant like going to a restaurant or something. She knew very well that Kaoru was just going to give Chisato her Valentine’s chocolates; Kaoru was just being overdramatic about it as she usually did with this kind of stuff. It was sweet, though once again Chisato didn’t want whatever show Kaoru was going to put on to get in the way of her plans.

“Don’t fret, my Juliet. We are simply going to the back of the school.” She says this and starts to walk towards the club room’s exit, guestering Chisato to follow behind her.

Chisato follows Kaoru through the school and notices that the taller girl has gone a little quiet. She’s also walking fast enough so that Chisato was behind her at all times, almost as if Kaoru didn’t want Chisato walking directly beside her. Chisato couldn’t see why Kaoru would feel this way though, so she just concluded that she was thinking too much into it.

Eventually the two reached the back of Haneoka Academy. It was quiet and absent of any other student. Kaoru stopped walking and Chisato did as well. The taller girl turned around and everything about her demeanor seemed...different. It lacked the flair that Kaoru usually had to herself and Chisato could sense slight shyness. Despite this, Kaoru wore her typical smile as she looked at Chisato. They looked at each other for a weird, awkward silence.

“So, why did you drag me all the way back here?” Chisato finally went. Goodness, it was just chocolates. Why was Kaoru making such a huge deal out of this? The two literally made the candies together and even ate a few pieces before wrapping them. Was Kaoru  _ really _ going to do something dramatic for something this simple?

“I made you chocolates.” Kaoru says simply, still smiling.

“Of course you did. We literally made them together.” Chisato scoffed, finally getting a bit irritated. The resentment from Chisato being unable to write a good letter to Kaoru and having her entire bag of chocolates completely overlooked was starting to come back again and she did not like it.

“No...you see…” the tone of Kaoru’s voice suddenly changes. It’s quieter now, and the taller girl is looking away from Chisato. She sets down both her bags and opens up one of them. Silently, she rummages through the school bag until she finds what she was looking for and pulls it out, “I made these all by myself.”

Kaoru is holding the item behind her back, and her red eyes are averted sideways. Her entire body seems tense. 

Chisato blinks a few times in slight surprise, “You made more chocolates? Why? I’m sure we made enough together.”

“I know that, but I wanted to do something a little special for you. Since you were so kind in helping me.” Kaoru attempts to do her charming smile, but it was very obvious that she was trying to come off as composed when she really was not. Kaoru was still looking away and rocked a bit on her feet. The supposed chocolates were still hiding stubbornly behind Kaoru’s back.

Nonetheless, the fact that Kaoru actually made more chocolates all on her own for the sake of doing something special for Chisato was very kind. The blonde grinned, “Ah, you really didn’t have to go that far, Kaoru. Thank you though…”

The shorter girl’s voice trails off as she expectantly waits for Kaoru to hand her the chocolates. Yet Kaoru stays put. She stands like that for a while until Chisato finally goes, “Kaoru? Are you going to give me the chocolates?”

“Y-yes!” Kaoru flinches and tries desperately to pull herself back to her usual fashion. It wasn’t working too well, “You see...I made the chocolates, and I decorated a box…”

“Mhmmm?” Chisato nodded expectantly.

Suddenly Kaoru whips out a heart-shaped box and holds it out to Chisato. Her cheeks flush a tad and her red eyes focus to the side.

“I don’t know if they’re that good...I made a few mistakes. I also tried to make the box look nice but I don’t know if you’ll really like it…” The taller girl mumbles and Chisato stares at the box stupidly. 

The box was adorable; It was white and heart-shaped with a glittery yellow ribbon tied around it. In fancy handwriting, ‘Chisato’ was written with doodles of some roses around it. Kaoru really tried to make the box look nice, and Chisato felt herself blush a little as she took the box.

“Aww...Kaoru, this is adorable!” Chisato smiles as she holds the box in her hands. Instantly, Chisato takes off the ribbon and opens it up. In the box were neatly arranged chocolates, some white with raspberry while others appeared to be dark chocolate. Chisato took one of the white ones and plopped it into her mouth.

“I didn’t know what your favorite kind was, and I wanted this to be a surprise so I didn’t ask...I just did a bit of everything.” Kaoru went, still averting her eyes shyly as Chisato chewed and swallowed the chocolate.

“Kaoru, these are really good!” Chisato exclaims.

“Oh, is that so?” Kaoru finally looks up, appearing to be a bit startled by Chisato liking the chocolates that much. But the shock dies off and Kaoru comfortably smiles and looks away bashfully, “I’m glad. I was a bit worried they wouldn’t turn out good enough for you…”

“Kaoru, I can guarantee that these chocolates are absolutely delicious…Hm?” Something at the bottom of the chocolate box catches Chisato’s eye. It appeared to be a notecard, but it was face down. Curious, Chisato pulls the slip of paper out and flips it around. On the lined side of the notecard was a letter in Kaoru’s handwriting.

The second Chisato read the nickname, her heart began to flutter.

_ Chii-chan, _

_ Thank you for making chocolates with me. I know it’s silly to be so embarrassed that I can’t cook, but I had a lot of fun being with you. It felt a lot like old times, and that made me really happy. Sleeping on your lap was very, very nice too. I want to do it again honestly, but I know you think it’s childish, so we don’t have to if you don’t want to. I just like being with you as childhood friends. You’re very important to me. I hope you know that. _

_ For anybody else, I would have written a sonnet, but I know you prefer that I say things as the Kaoru Seta that only you know. Unfortunately, these feelings make me feel a bit shy, so I can only comfortably get them across in person by playing my role and reciting some quotes. So that’s why I wrote my true feelings in a letter and asked for you to read this privately.  _

_ One day I’ll work up the courage to tell you all that I feel in person. But until then, just know that you are a dear person to me, more than you know.  _

_ Thanks for being by my side. You’re the coolest, Chii-chan! _

_ I love you, _

_ Kao-chan _

  
  


“...Oh…” Chisato softly gasps and looks up at Kaoru, who looked back perplexedly.

“Hmm? What is it?”

“Your letter…”

About two seconds pass, then Kaoru’s eyes bulged. Her skin turned deep crimson as she looked from the slip of paper in Chisato’s hands to Chisato, back at the paper then to the ground. The taller girl’s hands shakily cover her mouth and she walks back a few steps, almost like she wants to run away.

“You...read that?” She whispers.

“Yes…” Chisato would have laughed at the absolutely precious look Kaoru wore on her face if it weren’t for the fact that Chisato was blushing as well, “I didn’t know I was supposed to read this in private. I’m sorry…”

Kaoru remained silent, looking more and more shy by the second.

“Kao-chan, that was really, really sweet.”

Sweet was an understatement. Chisato had no good enough word to describe how lovely the letter was and how happy it made her. It was genuine; she could tell that Kaoru meant every word. It was in that letter that Chisato saw the true Kaoru Seta, the Kaoru Seta that Chisato held so dear to her heart. Not just the shy fumbling girl who got shy over a nickname, or the fleeting prince who won the hearts of so many girls. This letter was just Kaoru. All of who she was put into one simple letter to say how she really felt. And it was all just for Chisato.

As for the simple ‘I love you’ at the end? Chisato would re-read that part for the rest of her life if she could.

“I...I forgot to tell you about the letter...I was so caught up in the moment.” Kaoru mumbled, refusing to look up from her feet, “I wasn’t expecting you to read it...with me right here…”

Chisato walked over to the taller girl and gently placed her hands on Kaoru’s. She pulled them down so that she could see all of Kaoru’s embarrassed, blushing, adorably pretty face. But Kaoru still wouldn’t look at her.

“Kao-chan, look at me.”

Slowly, Kaoru does so.

“That letter means so much to me. It made me so, so happy. The chocolates made me happy too. Thank you, Kao-chan.” Chisato smiles as she looks into Kaoru’s eyes, “I’m looking forward to the day you can tell me these things in person.” 

Kaoru’s eyes widen and Chisato hears her inhale. The look of shock gradually relaxes into a gentle smile as Kaoru silently nods and bashfully looks away again. Chisato giggles a little at the reaction and feels the flutter of her heart go faster.

The pair stay there clasping each other’s hands and blushing like idiots until Chisato realizes that any onlooker may interpret what the two were doing as romantic. 

“Perhaps we should head back now.” Chisato says awkwardly as she slowly pulls away.

“Y-yeah.” Kaoru responds, scratching her chin in an attempt to seem casual.

Chisato puts the letter back into the box and places it in her school bag. Kaoru picks up her bags along with Chisato and the two silently walk back to the front of the school. This time Kaoru allows Chisato to walk beside her, and the blonde notices the soft smile and gentle blush that was on Kaoru’s face. 

At the school gates, Maya and Hina were there much to Chisato’s surprise. Hina behaved as usual and bounced around waving when she saw the two familiar faces. Maya opened her mouth to greet the two as well but instantly clamped her mouth shut. She looked at Hina and something appeared to pass between the two that made them both stare at each other bug eyed, then look at Kaoru expectantly as she approached with Chisato.

Kaoru gave a quick nod to her classmates and they both beamed. Was there something going on that Chisato should know about?

“Well, that was nice. However we should get going to the agency...we probably have a bunch of letters from fans I need to pick up.” Chisato announces once she reached Hina and Maya. Her bandmates agreed.

“Oooh! That’s right!” Hina gasped, “I can’t wait to see what interesting letters imma get from my fans this year!”

“Yeah, reading letters is always so nice. Everybody is super kind.” Maya grins at the thought.

The Pastel*Palettes members make their farewells to Kaoru, Maya and Hina noticeably paying a lot of attention to how Chisato thanked Kaoru again for the chocolates and said her goodbyes. When she asked them what the deal was, they both replied with “Nothing” and continued to give each other looks during their whole walk to the talent agency. 

Chisato didn’t let it get to her that much though. Her mind was still on the letter Kaoru wrote for her. A part of Chisato felt guilty because her simple letter and bag of chocolates was pretty lame compared to what Kaoru did. Chisato wanted to return the kindness and affection Kaoru gave in that letter but as always Chisato knew she could never find the right words. Plus it was too late now, she already gave Kaoru what she wrote.

But perhaps next year Chisato may be able to do something more meaningful. Chisato can put together something that says how dear Kaoru is to her as a friend...or perhaps something a little more than that. Maybe Chisato could even say it in person instead of writing her feelings down in a letter.

Until then Chisato would just happily hold what Kaoru wrote for her close to her heart. Embarrassingly, she may re-read it as well, beaming over the thought that the sentiments in Kaoru’s message was just for Chisato herself, happily thinking about the day Kaoru would be able to say these same exact things in person.

* * *

Haneoka’s Prince received plenty of letters from her dear kittens. Some were short and sweet while others were genuine messages talking about how much they admired Kaoru and saw her as their prince. There were also the tasty candies and chocolates, which Kaoru very much enjoyed snacking on as she read her messages.

So much love and kindness went into these gifts given to her, and Kaoru appreciated every single one of them. Each present from her little kittens was important and to be valued.

However there was one gift in particular that would always stand out in the prince’s eyes. One bag of chocolates with a simple letter attached to it that would make the cool and composed prince melt into a bashful, rosy colored princess.

That gift was from none other than Chisato Shirasagi, Kaoru’s childhood friend and also the girl she has been in love with since she was seven.

_ Kao-chan, _

_ I hope that me writing your nickname isn’t as embarrassing for you!  _

_ Thank you very much for making these chocolates with me, it was very fun. _

_ I know you’ve already had some of these since we made them together, but I hope you enjoy these sweets regardless! _

_ Thanks for sticking with me for so long. Happy Valentines! _

_ Your BFF, _

_ Chii-chan <3 _

Everything from the nickname to the little heart at the end of Chisato’s nickname made Kaoru feel like the happiest girl in the world. The letter was simple, but she could tell that Chisato genuinely tried; She wouldn’t have used the nickname if she didn’t. 

It turns out that both Kaoru and Chisato really tried to get their feelings across through their Valentines gifts to each other; They wanted to tell each other how much one meant to the other, but were too shy to say it in person or too clumsy with words to get it done well. But Kaoru knows that her letter got through to Chisato, and Chisato’s letter definitely got through to her.

Though of course, not  _ all  _ of Kaoru’s true feelings were put into the letter. She could never bring herself to confess her love, no matter how much Hina and Maya coaxed her to. But to please them this time, Kaoru brought herself to admit how much she liked sleeping on Chisato’s lap. 

_ “I’m looking forward to the day you can tell me these things in person.”  _

Kaoru promised herself to go through with what Chisato whispered to her behind the school that day. Maybe it wouldn’t be this year, or the next, but one day she will. Whether she would tell Chisato about her romantic feelings as well Kaoru didn’t know, but that was something to think about at a later time.

So for now, Haneoka’s prince would send Chisato a little text thanking her for the candies and letter. Perhaps she would repay Chisato on white day with some roses or a tribute in one of her performances.

Then Kaoru would hop back onto her bed and re-read that letter a few more times, giggling and blushing like an absolute idiot until she got a bit sleepy and decided to go to bed. Maybe she would think about Chisato a little more as she slept too.


End file.
